HOLLYWOOD, Fla., May 24 /PRNewswire/ — The landmark South Florida beach front pedestrian path known as the Broadwalk is undergoing an extensive renovation as the first part of a multi-million dollar redevelopment effort by the City of Hollywood.

Named one of the country’s Top 10 nostalgic beach front boardwalks in USA Today in 2005, the new Hollywood Broadwalk combines historical visual cues with modern new amenities.

On Wednesday, May 31st, The City of Hollywood Mayor Mara Giulianti will flip the switch to 50 new historically themed street lights that will mark a milestone for the Broadwalk’s rebirth.

Conceived and built in 1923 by Hollywood’s founder Joseph Young, the original Broadwalk was a 30-foot wide promenade originally running for one and one-half miles down the spectacular Hollywood Beach coast.

Auto-free since its inception, the Broadwalk has long been a favorite for cycling, roller blading and jogging, and the redesign has taken this into consideration to create a dynamic experience for bodies in motion. Now stretching for 40-blocks (or two and one-half miles), the wide walking area was rebuilt with multicolored concrete pavers and set next to a tabby shell covered colored bike path.

Running alongside the pedestrian walks, a crushed-shell jogging track is bounded with an 18-inch high decorative wall with an LED light display those cycles through soft tropical colors that will change by season and holidays.

Reproduction tri-globe lamps from the 1920s light the pathway at night complimented by Acorn topped street lamps at street entrances. Other public improvements include new beach showers, sculptures, and landscaped plazas and vista points that will create a dramatic path to the new Broadwalk.

When Joseph Young built the Broadwalk in the 1920s, it led to the Hollywood Beach Casino, and Young had hoped that it would help make Hollywood the Atlantic City of the South.

Ultimately, however, the Broadwalk outlasted both the casino and Young’s vision.

Damaged and rebuilt after the hurricanes of 1926 and 1947, the Broadwalk was at times made of concrete, wood planks and asphalt as it underwent several facelifts. Still, its popularity as a public space and South Florida attraction has endured for more than 80 years, and The City of Hollywood Mayor Giulianti expects that this latest incarnation of the Broadwalk will continue that tradition. http://www.hollywoodbeachcra.org/

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